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Curbside Classics Archives
automatic transmission Archive
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![Back in 1961, Mercedes-Benz belatedly introduced its first in-house automatic transmission, known by the prosaic designation K4A 025 and offered in the company’s new W112 Mercedes 300SE flagship sedan. […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/1962-Mercedes-Benz-300SE-sedan-Bordeaux-Lutziger-Classic-Cars-front-3q-left.webp?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "CC Tech: 1961 Mercedes-Benz K4A Automatic Transmission – “Mercedes Builds A Brain Box”")
CC Tech: 1961 Mercedes-Benz K4A Automatic Transmission – “Mercedes Builds A Brain Box”
Posted on May 2, 2025 | 16 CommentsBack in 1961, Mercedes-Benz belatedly introduced its first in-house automatic transmission, known by the prosaic designation K4A 025 and offered in the company’s new W112 Mercedes 300SE flagship sedan. […] -
![The auction listing for this attractive Tampico Red 1961 Buick Electra 225 convertible claims that it has a “column-shifted two-speed automatic transmission.” As you may already know if you’re […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/1961-Buick-Electra-225-convertible-RM-Sothebys-front-3q.webp?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "CC Tech: Inside Buick’s Turbine Drive (Twin Turbine) Automatic Transmission")
CC Tech: Inside Buick’s Turbine Drive (Twin Turbine) Automatic Transmission
Posted on April 7, 2025 | 31 CommentsThe auction listing for this attractive Tampico Red 1961 Buick Electra 225 convertible claims that it has a “column-shifted two-speed automatic transmission.” As you may already know if you’re […] -
![Most people know that by the late 1950s, most U.S. cars offered automatic transmissions, and most American buyers preferred them, although the compacts and sporty car boom of the […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/1962_rambler_classic_img_5208-14865.webp?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "Automotive History: Which U.S. Cars Of The 1960s Most Often Had Manual Transmission?")
Automotive History: Which U.S. Cars Of The 1960s Most Often Had Manual Transmission?
Posted on February 15, 2025 | 45 CommentsMost people know that by the late 1950s, most U.S. cars offered automatic transmissions, and most American buyers preferred them, although the compacts and sporty car boom of the […] -
![I previously talked about how the unusual 1961–1963 Buick Dual-Path Turbine Drive automatic went backwards. Here’s the rest of the story of this remarkable, short-lived transmission, including the question […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/1961-Buick-Skylark-Dual-Path-Turbine-Drive-AACA-Forums.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "CC Tech: More on the Buick Dual-Path Turbine Drive Transmission – Asking “Why” As Well As “How”")
CC Tech: More on the Buick Dual-Path Turbine Drive Transmission – Asking “Why” As Well As “How”
Posted on December 23, 2024 | 18 CommentsI previously talked about how the unusual 1961–1963 Buick Dual-Path Turbine Drive automatic went backwards. Here’s the rest of the story of this remarkable, short-lived transmission, including the question […] -
![GM’s Y-body “senior compacts” — the Buick Special/Skylark, Oldsmobile F-85/Cutlass, and Pontiac Tempest/Le Mans — boasted many interesting engineering features, from their lightweight aluminum V-8 engines to the Tempest’s flexible […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/1961-Buick-Dual-Path-Turbine-Drive-cutaway.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "CC Tech: 1961–1963 Buick Dual-Path Turbine Drive Transmission – Forward Thinking About Going Backwards")
CC Tech: 1961–1963 Buick Dual-Path Turbine Drive Transmission – Forward Thinking About Going Backwards
Posted on December 7, 2024 | 21 CommentsGM’s Y-body “senior compacts” — the Buick Special/Skylark, Oldsmobile F-85/Cutlass, and Pontiac Tempest/Le Mans — boasted many interesting engineering features, from their lightweight aluminum V-8 engines to the Tempest’s flexible […] -
![While the illustration above might look a lot like Chevrolet’s ubiquitous aluminum Powerglide, it’s actually a completely different transmission: the Buick-built two-speed Super Turbine 300 automatic transmission, which went into […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Buick-Super-Turbine-300-automatic-transmission-640099-F05.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "CC Tech: The Buick Super Turbine 300 Automatic Transmission — Not a Powerglide")
CC Tech: The Buick Super Turbine 300 Automatic Transmission — Not a Powerglide
Posted on December 3, 2024 | 28 CommentsWhile the illustration above might look a lot like Chevrolet’s ubiquitous aluminum Powerglide, it’s actually a completely different transmission: the Buick-built two-speed Super Turbine 300 automatic transmission, which went into […] -
![Any feature about a pickup seems to be accompanied by comments lamenting the loss of basic pickups. Despite these perceptions, basic spec pickups do still exist although they have become […]](https://i0.wp.com/www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/2021-Silverado.jpg?resize=115%2C115&ssl=1 "Automotive History: Losing The Plot? The History Of The American Pickup Becoming More Civilized")
Automotive History: Losing The Plot? The History Of The American Pickup Becoming More Civilized
Posted on December 22, 2020 | 63 CommentsAny feature about a pickup seems to be accompanied by comments lamenting the loss of basic pickups. Despite these perceptions, basic spec pickups do still exist although they have become […]
